Regional Briefs: Oct. 16

Azusa police checking out a call about a man sleeping in a car on Monday found a dead man instead and two beakers containing an unknown liquid.

It is being investigated as a suspicious death.

A hazardous material team from the Los Angeles County Fire Department was called to investigate any potential hazards.

Fire Capt. William Pryor said they determined the chemicals didn't pose a danger to the people in the area. He added that the county health hazmat was still investigating what chemical was in the containers.

A passer-by who saw the man parked in the 500 block of Alameda Avenue called police at 10:42 a.m.

Azusa police Lt. Paul Dennis said the Nissan Sentra was still running when officers arrived at the scene.

They tried to wake up the driver, he added. Paramedics pronounced the man dead at the scene.

"On the front passenger seat were a couple of beakers that contained some sort of chemical," Dennis said.

Authorities described the man as a Latino in his mid 30s to early 40s. They haven't released his name.

Ed Winter, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Department of Coroner, said the man's next of kin hasn't been notified yet.

NORWALK

Standoff with man ends in arrest

A 66-year-old man with a sword was arrested after a stand-off with deputies that lasted 10 hours Monday.

Deputies responded to a domestic violence call in the 14000 block of Norwalk Boulevard that turned into a stand-off involving the sheriff's Special Enforcement Bureau which is the department's SWAT team.

The call, which came in at 2 a.m., reported a boyfriend and girlfriend fighting inside a residence, Sgt. Marc Boskovich said.

Details about the incident were still scarce by Monday night.

Sgt. Al Cano said a man at the residence barricaded himself and refused to cooperate with deputies. He thinks the man was trying to escape when arrested.

Cano didn't know what type of sword was recovered.

Bruce Guerrero of Norwalk was arrested on suspicion of exhibiting a deadly weapon with intent to resist arrest. He was being held at the sheriff's Norwalk station jail in lieu of $50,000 bail.

Guerrero will be arraigned Wednesday at Bellflower Superior Court.

PASADENA

Authorities identify driver who collapsed

Coroner's officials identified the driver who collapsed and died on a Pasadena street over the weekend as a 65-year-old Arcadia woman.

The autopsy on Linda Pui-Yue Tsui was being done Monday, said Ed Winter, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Department of Coroner.

Authorities don't suspect foul play.

Pasadena police said the woman was driving along Green Street between Orange Grove Boulevard and Grand Avenue on Saturday afternoon when she pulled over, apparently suffering from a medical problem.

Tsui got out of her car and collapsed. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

DIAMOND BAR

Three burglary suspects caught

Three men were in custody after a short car chase Monday.

In addition to evading police, the three were arrested on suspicion of burglary after deputies found stolen property in their vehicle.

Lt. Mike Browne of the sheriff's Walnut/Diamond Bar station said the property was taken during a burglary in Diamond Bar. He didn't release the suspects' names, saying it was an ongoing investigation.

Deputies responded to a call about a residential burglary where three people were seen leaving, Browne said. He added that the house was not burglarized.

Browne said deputies saw the vehicle in the neighborhood and tried to stop it. The vehicle took off.

The chase started at

9:53 a.m. and lasted less than a minute, he said.

It ended on the connector road of the eastbound 60 and southbound 57 freeways near Brea Canyon Road.

Browne said the stolen items came from another burglary that occurred two blocks away.